The Boss. I attended a pre-launch function for a potential client last night. It was organized at a fancy pant-sie restaurant not far from my house. No sooner that I arrived I was led to the private room behind the stage (it was also a jazz club) to meet the ‘Boss’. Inside I was introduced to the Boss, and I guess the immediate impression was that the Boss would be perfectly casted to play a Chinese triad chieftain in a Jackie Chan movie. His stern demeanour and the clucking underlings that deferentially hovered around him made the atmosphere even more convincing.
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| Come to the back. My boss wants to meet you. *Gulp* |
Engak Bisa. The Boss was very polite and we discussed potential work. That took about 20 minutes. After that, curious as I was (and talkative as he was), we continued to chat about work, business and politics, especially in Indonesia. Oh, I forgot to mention that he is Indonesian. He shared many experiences and lessons about his life, work and family. But his main passion was in marketing and motivation, and in that sphere I found the Boss to be very passionate. Although he spoke in Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesia Official Language), I was quite able to follow him as my Malay language and Bahasa Indonesia are closely related. Anyhow, He had one particular perspective about life, ambition and success which I found to be enlightening. He said…
Walaupun kamu tahu, engak pasti kamu mengerti. Sekiranya kamu mengerti, engak pasti kamu bisa. Walaupun kamu bisa, engak pasti kamu dapat. Dan walaupun kamu dapat, engak pasti apa yang kamu dapat itu bagus!
(Meaning - Just because you know, it does necessarily mean that you understand. Even if you do understand, it does not mean that you are applying your understanding consistently. And even if you do apply your understanding regularly, it does not mean that you are guaranteed success. And even if you do succeed, it does not mean that what you succeed in achieving is necessarily a good thing for you!)
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| Learning this is a good start. But it is still a looong way to the Conductor's baton of the Vienna Philharmonic... |
“The problem with a lot of people...” the Boss continued, “... is because they leap from a little knowledge to imagining their grand moment of personal achievement. They learn to play ‘Mary had a Little Lamb’ on the piano with one finger in the morning, and they go to bed at night imagining themselves conducting the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. That is just ridiculous!”
I think I am just like that. A bit of a daydreamer. But the truth is that there is no guarantee of success, and certainly there will be none if you are not willing to sweat and work like a dog. Throughout our conversation, my mind kept drifting back to my own career and how woefully short I am in that aspect. The introspection made me feel a little sad. But I hope to turn this introspection into an inspiration.
Pray for me and wish me luck, sunshine!
wa min Allah at-taufiq
Hate has no place in Islam
Love will show the Way
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